Ex-Scouts allege sex abuse by former Minn. troop leader

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Two former Boy Scouts have filed lawsuits alleging they were sexually abused by a Minnesota troop leader nearly four decades ago.

St. Paul attorney Jeff Anderson filed the lawsuits Monday on behalf of two former Rochester residents.

The former Scouts say they were abused in the 1970s by Richard Hokanson, a convicted molester who now lives in Faribault.

Defendants include the Boy Scouts of America, Gamehaven Council, St. Pius X Catholic Church of Rochester and Hokanson.

The Star Tribune (http://bit.ly/13ZtByU) reports the lawsuit alleges adults involved at the church with the Boy Scouts received information about Hokanson's alleged sex abuse and “failed to act to protect children.”

Hokanson declined comment. The Boys Scouts say they can't comment but said, “Any instance of child victimization or abuse is intolerable and unacceptable.”